Agent X
by CaitieBug16
Summary: Yes, this story WAS half inspired by the Backyardigans- Super Secret Super Spy. My brother watches this, so that's how. I'm keeping two characters the same, but adding a twist. I know I spelled "pedestal" wrong, you'll just have to overlook that...
1. Chapter 1

Agent X walked into the restaurant on Twenty-Fourth Avenue and took a seat at a booth. His next assignment was waiting for him in disguise here, so he had to be on the lookout; his contact would be his server...  
"Hello there." Agent X looked up from his menu to see a chipper young woman about his age, with chestnut brown hair in a ponytail, and freckles all over her cheeks and the bridge of her nose. "My name's Cassandra and I'll be your server this evening." She winked, and Agent X smiled back at who he knew to be Miss Kasidy Fisher from Headquarters.  
"Yes, I'd like the burger with chips, thanks." His voice was calm, stoic, but also soft in a charming sort of way that was dangerous to women.  
The cheeseburger was what he'd been assigned to order; it was part of the confirmation that he really _was _Agent X. But, any ol' person could order a cheeseburger and chips. Kasidy asked, just to make sure he was indeed the secret agent in disguise, "Ketchup or honey mustard?"  
Agent X answered as he'd been instructed. "Sour cream please, if you have any."  
Now that his identity was confirmed, Miss Cassandra winked once more, then smoothly turned around and walked into the kitchens. Agent X smiled inwardly as he pretended to look at the menu, also at the same time pretending to be a young man by the name of James Blackston. Only three people had ever known his true name, and those three would be a close friend and his parents, whom were dead. Only one _living_ person knew his name, and Agent X was quite content to let things stay that way.  
Kasidy jarred him out of his train of thought by plunking a tray of food infront of him. "Enjoy your meal." She grinned at him in a way that meant _See you in ten._ He nodded in return, and she walked away. Looking back at the food, he pushed his tinted black glasses up on the bridge of his nose. With barely a click of tiny gadgets whirring to life, a detailed analysis of the plate infront of him appeared before his eyes. He nonchalantly adjusted the setting to focus; the lenses narrowed in on the small cup that looked like sour cream. To a person glancing his way, he was only adjusting his glasses, and not reading the words that blinked at him from the inside of his lens:

TRANSMISSION DETECTED.  
ANALYSIS COMPLETE.

Smirking slightly as his spywear switched to normal mode, Agent X pushed the button disguised as the cup of sour cream, ignoring the child that was looking at him strangely from the other table. Inside the tray, there was a faint clicking noise, something only Agent X could catch.  
CONNECTING...read the lens of his glasses, and there was a soft crackle in the earpiece which rested in his right ear.  
"Hello, Agent X," A woman's voice said into his ear. He smiled wryly.  
"Hello. How are you?"  
The woman laughed, a sound that made Agent X's mood lighten just a bit. "You certainly _are_ Agent X. No one _else_ has the audacity to ask me how I'm doing in the middle of a mission. " She laughed again, and it took a large amount of Agent X's self control to keep himself from grinning.  
"What?" He asked innocently. "_No one else _has time for frivolity? What has this world become?"  
"Just remember that you're on duty, Agent X," she warned through the earpiece. "One can't have time for frivolity if the country's about to be blown up."  
His lips pressed into a thin line. "You think that's what's going to happen?"  
"You can never be too careful. Always assume the worst."  
"You don't have to baby me; I was through with my training long ago."  
The way the woman answered betrayed the fact that she was blushing on the other end of the transmission. "...I was simply _reminding_ you. You must be in a strange mood, Agent X. Are you ready for your next destination? Headquarters. Now."  
Agent X couldn't resist smiling. "On my way."

He scolded himself as he walked through the parking lot. _That was too close, _he thought in the dark, making his way to the car. The full moon was the only light source this time of night. _You were too open. Why can't you be stone, like you are when you're getting instructions from anyone else?_  
He slid into the driver's seat of the black ferrari- at least, that's what it was disguised to be. He said the code word that started it up. "Alpha code X-133357." There was a hum as everything in the car came alive, little blue lights flickering a little happy greeting. He pressed a button on the control panel to the right of the dashboard, and a cup of steaming coffee came up on a small pedistal from in what looked to be an armrest between the driver's seat and the front passanger's.  
"Boo!"  
Agent X almost spit out his coffee, but managed to swallow. Kasidy was the _only _person that could sneak up on him, and in this area of stealth lay her talent. "Good heavens, Kasidy," Agent X said, shaking his head as he set the coffee in the cupholder.  
Laughing slightly, she slid into the front passenger seat and buckled up. "I really do prefer to be called Cassandra, you know."  
"What you want isn't really any of my concern," he said smoothly, glancing back over his shoulder to see if he would hit anything if he backed up. All was clear, so, one hand on the steering wheel, he pulled out and headed for the road.  
Kasidy was used to this manner of speaking from him, so she just shrugged. "What were orders?"  
"Headquarters," he replied tartly. "This instant, apparently."  
"She just wants to see _you _again," Kasidy teased. Agent X leaned into shadow so she wouldn't see how the playful comment had actually made him blush.  
"Of course not," he replied with no emotion in his voice. "Don't be a fool." Kasidy just shrugged and leaned back in her seat, pulling off her brown wig to reveal fiery red hair. Agent X smirked. There was no way he was letting her see _his _hair color. Not that it was any abnormal shade, but he didn't trust _anyone_. No offense to Kasidy at all; it was just how he was. Even though he'd known her for a couple of years, a person would think it startling to see how little the woman actually knew of him.  
"Which one?" She asked.  
Agent X didn't answer. If a villain had put any listening divices in the vehicle, they would know the location of the base. He couldn't risk it. He put on the turn signal and took the exit off the highway.  
"Oh. _This_ one," The American said quietly. Agent X just nodded as they drove along the road that to the right looked out over the English Channel.  
"You ready for this, Miss Cassandra?" Agent X said, smiling slightly as he adjusted his glasses.  
Kasidy grinned at him. "Ready, Agent X."  
He leaned over, flipped open the protective covering, and punched the green button in the center of the dashboard. Kasidy whooped "Woo-hooooo!" and put her hands up as Agent X veered off the road. The car crashed into the waves of the English Channel.  
"It's a good thing no one was on the road," Agent X murmered after the car had transformed to accomodate its watery surroundings, glancing into the rearview mirror. "I get nervous every time I have to do that."  
"_You _get _nervous?"_ She asked, raising her eyebrow at him. He ignored her and continued to steer the car through the rather deep water.  
"Remember what happened _last _time?" Kasidy asked, rolling her eyes.  
"Do you really think I'd let that happen again?" Agent X shook his head and kept his gaze infront of him. "No. The rudder's been fixed permanently."  
Kasidy laughed. "Okay," she said, shrugging; then she grinned. "It's amazing how a little piece of seaweed could alter the whole mission."  
He kept shaking his head. "The whole setup was stupid. Remember, it was a trap. That little piece of seaweed saved our lives."  
"It still made everyone at HQ think we were dead," she giggled. Agent X had nothing to say to that comment, so he ignored her the whole rest of the way, which induced a rather awkward silence between the two. After about ten minutes of gliding at sixty nautical miles per hour through the Atlantic, a blue light began flashing on the screen where the CD player usually was in a car.  
"Hit accept," he told Kasidy. She pressed the button beside the screen.  
"Landing code?" A synthosized woman's voice came through the speakers of the car.  
"Alpha 133357," Agent X replied calmly, pressing buttons on the control panel to immediately change his code for next entry. There was a short pause.  
"...Docking bay access granted. Bay door 135 opening. Alpha and Beta requested in Conference room 1 upon disembarking."  
The transmission ended, and Agent X steered the vehicle into the landing bay of what seemed to be a _huge _submarine. There was a _boom_ as the doors closed, and the water in the chamber sunk down into the floor of it. Kasidy and Agent X opened the car doors and stepped out, careful to avoid the slots in the floor into which the water drained. At the end of the docking bay chamber there was a small metal door. Agent X strolled calmly to it, but Kasidy kept looking behind her. He knew for certain that they weren't being followed; why was she looking back? No matter- he didn't care. His stomach was now winding into knots as he pressed the button that opened the doors to the elevator. _This happens _every time, he thought resentfully. _I wish it would end!  
_Kasidy pushed ungracefully past him into the elevator, but Agent X dismissed it without a second thought, and concentrated on his pounding heart. The elevator going up did nothing to help his stomach. "Are you okay?" Kasidy asked, concerned. "You look sick!" Agent X nodded to say he was alright, keeping his cool as always. Kasidy gave him a skeptical look, but didn't push the matter. The elevator stopped, and a cheerful little _ding! _sounded as the doors slid open. The pair walked out and down the hallway silently, toward a set of double doors with the title "Conference Room 1" on a plaque beside it. The doors slid open, and the two strode in.  
It was a huge room, very expensive, with walls lined with mother of pearl, the tile on the floor tinted with it as well. Infront of them on the wall was a humongous screen, much like one a person might find at an Imax theatre. There was a large golden chandelier in the center of the ceiling, and below it on the floor was an oak desk, behind it a leather, very comfortable-looking swivel chair; the back was facing the two. Agent X and Kasidy took off their dark glasses; they knew they were safe in this room.  
"Welcome home, you two." The woman's voice that had spoken in Agent X's earpiece earlier now came crystal clear, and the chair swiveled around to reveal a woman with wavy blonde hair, looking somewhere in her mid-twenties. She stood up and walked over to them, her flowing navy blue dress matching her sparkling eyes perfectly. Agent X blinked a few times, mostly for her benefit. She laughed, but to him it sounded more like a giggle. "What?" The Australian asked innocently.  
It took a large amount of Agent X's self-control to make his face appear expressionless. He answered her question with a question. "What what? Surely you didn't dress up just for the fun of it," he said, raising his eyebrow just a little bit. He usually only saw her in a black knee-high skirt and a collared blouse.  
Her earrings caught the light as she shook her head. "Oh no. I have no choice but to wear this." She rolled her eyes. "Meeting. And it's dreadfully formal."  
"Are you sure it isn't a trap?" he asked. "I could accompany you, and stay hidden."  
"He could, Miss T," Kasidy agreed with a nod.  
She smiled, but shook her head. "You act as if I haven't been trained, Agent X. I can take care of myself."  
"It was never implied that you couldn't," he answered cooly.  
She said sternly, "Then don't let me think otherwise." She paused. "You don't need to worry, I'll only be gone for three hours at the most. Now, as your superior officer, I order you to get some rest, Agent X. Remember you have an assignment first thing in the morning. Agent Beta, you're coming with me."  
"Yes, Miss T," Kasidy replied obediently. The pair began walking away, and Miss T only glanced behind her once to look at Agent X. All he could do was helplessly watch her go. His mind raced, longing to call after her; his arms tingled, wanting to hold her before she left his sight...but he couldn't attempt either of those things. If he somehow worked up the courage to convey his love, he would be putting them both in danger, particularly _her_. If an enemy had infultrated Headquarters and found out, not only would their lives be at stake, but worse- it would then be known that Agent X had a weakness, a _human _weakness, a weakness that could be captured and tortured to get the secret agent that's been a thorn in their side for years to finally come traipsing into their clutches. He couldn't do that to her. Yes, Agent X had a weakness, as all spies do, and it was vitally important that it not be found. Agents like Agent X were unstoppable only because they _didn't have a weakness. _Any interference with this could place the country in jeopardy. Agent X sighed inaudibly and walked to his quarters, taking the opposite exit out of the room.  
He stared at his reflection in the mirror as he took his contacts out. His brown eyes returned to their natural blue as he set the tiny, soft lenses in their case. Next he pulled off his black wig to reveal cropped blond hair. The only person that had ever seen him like this, his true self, was Miss T, and that had been the day they'd met...  
_I've got to stop doing that, _Agent X scolded himself, putting down his toothbrush for the third time that minute. He looked down at his hand and sighed, then grabbed the toothpaste and queezed a bit on. _Get over it already. Stop thinking about her. _As he said this in his head, he knew his efforts were futile. He'd been in love with the woman for two and a half years- by now the "get over her" command was losing its effect. Whenever Agent X even came close to convincing himself that he didn't love anyone, he'd have a dream about her, or he'd come back from a mission and lay eyes on her again, and the fire would then be rekindled, the pain worse than ever. He _hated _it; why couldn't love leave well enough alone and let him do his job? He thought on this as he lay on his bed, hands behind his head and looking up at the ceiling.  
Suddenly he bolted upright, having been struck with an idea. If he couldn't oppose love, he would embrace it. The least he could do was make sure Miss T made it back to HQ unharmed. She'd never have to know- he'd be back and in his bed before she even got out of her car. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, and walked out of the room. Agent X had never believed in pajamas; it made one slow when one has to arise suddenly. At this moment he was glad he could just get up and go. He half-jogged down the hallway, into the elevator. The doors opened and he was out like a bullet to the docking bay. As soon as he was seated in his car, he pressed a few buttons on the system's touchscreen. He hacked into Miss T's transport wirelessly: DOWNLOADING COORDINATES... read the screen. By squinting at the final results, Agent X could decode that the meeting was on the Isle of Wight, about twenty minutes away with his technology. For civilians it would take a good two hours. Before he started the car, he quickly deleted his history from the database's files; no one would ever know he'd done this. He couldn't afford having _anyone _suspecting, whether they were for or against him.  
"AB4351," he said quietly, and the car started up with a gentle _vrooooom. _"Go ahead and open the bay doors, Nigel," he said into the mic attatched to the door of the car. "I'm out."  
"It's _Agent Rivers!_" The rather high-pitched, indignant voice spewed out from the car speakers.  
"Work with me here," Agent X replied evenly.  
"Where are you going?"  
"Official business. Where I'm going is classified."  
"Then-"  
"Agent Nigel Rivers," he began slowly, stressing every syllable dangerously, "You are now an agent amung us, yes. But do keep in mind I outrank you on a number of levels. Open the door, if you please."  
It was obvious Nigel knew better than to keep an argument going with possibly the best secret agent on the planet. "Doors opening," he sighed, subdued. Agent X buckled his seatbelt as the water from the outside rushed in, engulfing the car. He backed out, turned one hundred-eighty degrees, and sped through the water toward the Isle of Wight. _Why am I doing this again?_ passed through his head. He had to think about that for a minute. _Let's see, I'm going against orders, and I'll probably die on my mission tomorrow for not getting enough sleep..._  
_I'm going because she needs me, _was his conclusion. All sorts of doubt pushed at his mind, but he blocked it out and concentrated on driving. _Surely she needs me. Kasidy can't protect her as well as I can. The girl's a scatterbrain..._ He knew Kasidy was just as competent as he was, but the excuse kept him determined to disobey. In the back of his head he had a hunch that something would go wrong, and his instincts were almost always right. After about seventeen minutes he glanced at his screen. If he docked about eight feet below the surface, he could swim the rest of the way to the island; and so he did, but before preparing to exit, he held his watch to the screen of the car and pressed a couple buttons on it. It only took a few seconds for the vehicle to wirelessly transmit Miss T's coordinates to the spywatch.  
The waterproof plastic head-to-toe covering kept him dry and brought him up quickly. He swam to the shore amid a cluster of boulders. Not many people were at the beach this time of year, but one could never be too careful. He emerged from the rocks in jeans, a navy blue T-shirt, and converse sneakers, completely blending in with the casual atmosphere of the island. The only thing distracting about him were his tinted black glasses. He walked up the beach and into the parking lot, where he glanced down at his watch, and nonchalantly pressed the button on it that brought up a map of the area. A red X appeared on the building Miss T's conference was in. He moved the focus to the street sign, then looked up from the device, searching for _his _street. He walked a ways up to find it, then compared it to the watch's calculations. The building was nearby, only half a block away. Agent X was secretly glad this was a relatively small island. He passed by shoppers, the families, the chavs, and the couples; almost no-one looked his way, which was good. At the crossing signal, he strolled with a small group of pedestrians across the road. They were talking animatedly amungst themselves.  
"...and it's closed today."  
"Well that's interesting. It's almost never closed."  
"Apparently they're remodeling the basement, Marie."  
"I didn't even know the place _had_ a basement."  
"Get over it, girls. It's not like there's anything secretive going on. There's nothing weird about this."  
They rounded the corner and Agent X lost the rest of the conversation, although he was willing to bet the closed building was the same one with the red X over it on his watch. The device on his wrist began to beep; the agent glanced down at it, and then back up. _There,_ he thought, catching sight of it. He wasn't surprised to find that it was just a restaurant, and he stood there for a minute, observing the place. Momentarily, he got the feeling something was wrong, and without a second's hesitation, rolled ninja-style around the corner of the building, where he quickly pressed himself against the side, his head turned toward the front to listen. He slowly pushed the button on his watch to video record, to catch the vital moments he wouldn't be able to see without giving himself away.  
He heard footsteps crunching the grass, about average weight; he couldn't tell whether the person was female or male because the shoes were obviously boots. Not mud boots, more like...riding boots, boots for _style_. Agent X was so silent, he barely breathed. The squeak of a door opening pierced his ears, and he only relaxed when he heard it close. Before doing anything, he pressed stop on his spywatch, then rewound it to when he pressed record. He watched the screen; a tall man, thin but not without muscle, walked the sidewalk, then crossed over to the grass up to the building. As he got closer Agent X observed that he wore black glasses similar to his own, black trousers, matching boots, and a button-up dress shirt. _Like a manager might wear, _Agent X thought suspiciously.


	2. Chapter 2

The man walked right by and entered the building, and that was when Agent X pressed the button to end video-record. The watch made the transition back to normal mode, displaying the digital time 11:02 PM. The man had been so kind as to let the agent know that the front was unlocked, but he wondered what awaited on the other side of the doors. If there were men guarding the meeting, which was almost certainly guaranteed, they would be willing to shoot anyone that didn't belong there. Agent X fingered the concealed gun on his belt, covered by the baggy shirt he wore. _You're being ridiculous, _he thought, when the watch on his wrist began to vibrate. INTERCEPTING TRANSMISSION,read the screen. He held it up to his ear so he could catch the small pieces it picked up.  
_"Watch...back...stone...shoot...lives..._sure..._happen...out...-gent X...-ceed an-...alive...rewarded...wait for...midnight...where...-nd out."  
_Of course, that wasn't enough to put a whole message together; it was a good thing Agent X had recorded it, and saved it on the spywear's hard drive. Two things aroused his suspicions; one, the voice was female and somewhat familiar, and two, the word "shoot" was said. His nonexistant dog ears perked up with interest, and he tinkered with the watch to trace where the signal had been released from. He was pleasantly surprised to find that it traced back to the other side of the restaurant, outside the building. _Interesting,_ he thought. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the snipit "-gent X" he'd picked up was "Agent X". Linking that with "shoot", a wry smile crossed his lips, silently daring any foes to try and shoot him. However, in the back of his mind he was aware of the possibility of a trap; suspecting this had saved his life on more than one of these occasions.  
_Now, how to get in. If there are enemies here, she and everyone inside are in danger as well, _he thought, thinking of Miss T. He reached up and clicked the mode on his glasses to x-ray vision. Through his lenses, the wall of the restaurant simply dissolved, and he saw inside the building that he'd been right about the entrance; behind the tinted double-doors stood four uniformed men with dark glasses and ear pieces. The front was not idealistic for someone who wanted to get in unnoticed. However, the manager certainly had. Agent X narrowed in on the man, who had just cleared security and was now making his way toward a set of double-doors on the side of the lobby area labeled "Employees Only". Before entering, he did something that immediately struck Agent X as suspicious. _He looked around, _as if making sure no one was watching him, placed two fingers on his earpiece, and whispered something. A second later, Agent X's watch began to vibrate again, and, smirking, he pressed the button that would intercept the radio waves. Since transmission was close by, he heard every word.  
_"Made it in. Proceeding to point three. Stone out."  
_"Stone, eh?" Agent X murmered. The name was unfamiliar, but he was always game for a new enemy. He suddenly made the connection to the word "stone" that was said in the earlier message he'd recorded.  
The man pushed the double-doors open, revealing the inside of a restaurant kitchen, and stepped in, the doors flopping closed behind him. Something about this man spelled "_Up to no good"_ to Agent X, and he decided to follow him. The only problem was getting in.  
_There has to be a back way to the kitchen, _he thought. How else would the workers get new deliveries into the restaurant? He quickly rounded the corner, and searched. There was a concrete platform, on the top of which was a set of large metal double-doors. Beside that was a very wide, blue dumpster. He stepped up to the doors, and found that they were locked. _To be expected, _he thought, pulling out a small case from his belt, no bigger than a glasses sleeve. He took out two things, a small file and an equally thin straight piece of wire, and got to work, meddling the two instruments into the keyhole. As he worked he listened for the _click, click, click_ of the tumblers inside working together to unlock the door. He got it after a minute or so, and the door opened with a soft creak. He closed it behind him, and realized he was in the kitchen's walk-in refrigerator. He hoped _that_ wasn't locked too, but it was, as he found out when he tried the door. He pulled the safety latch, and the door popped open, much to his relief. It locked with a click behind him when he shut it.  
The kitchen was empty- where had Stone gone? He opened every door, until he came to one that resembled a utility closet...except this utility closet was locked with an electric padlock.  
"Passcode required," a synthesized voice spurted when he tried the handle. He recognized the device style of the padlock; they were all over HQ. The passcode would have something to do with the organization, he was sure. He also knew that he must think carefully- if he got three tries wrong, the alarm would sound off. On a sudden impulse, he tried the code he'd used to unlock his car. The device beeped and flashed red. _Wrong._  
He tried again. _I changed my password to the car too quickly, _he thought. _I'll use the one from earlier today._ He punched in "AB4351" on the keypad and crossed his fingers. The device beeped twice and flashed green as the metal door slid open. Agent X smiled, adjusted his glasses, and stepped in.  
It was a pleasant stairway, going down in a spiral. It was lit, so Agent X was comfortable with the door coasting shut behind him. His steps made almost no noise as he looked around for cameras; he found none. He could faintly hear a voice from the floor below. Was this the meeting?  
But as he got nearer, he recognized the voice. His watch vibrated, but he ignored it; he could hear what Stone was saying just fine.  
"No! I'm here! I'm really here, and I'm going to do it! No, Agent X hasn't shown up. I doubt he'll come anyway. Yes, I know. Charges set. Over and out."

_Charges set. _Bombs. Agent X took out his gun and stepped into the light infront of Stone, pointing it straight at him. "Agent X!" Stone's eyes widened.  
"I really suggest you deactivate the charges you set, right now." His voice was low and dangerous.  
"What are you, my mother?" Stone sneered. He had a Yorkshire accent. "They can't _be_ deactivated."  
"Well, you better try," Agent X growled, "or I shoot."  
Stone made his way slowly to the small explosive package, Agent X's gun trained on him all the while. He bent over, as if to begin taking apart the bomb, but suddenly a cloud of grey smoke puffed up, filling the room and engulfing both individuals, Stone and Agent X. He coughed; the air burned his lungs and made his eyes water, which resulted in him leaning against the wall. He remembered that smoke rises, and dropped to the floor, where there was air, just in time to see a pair of boots run up the first few steps of the stairs. Agent X shot twice, but evidently missed because Stone did not tumble back down. The smoke was clearing now, so Agent X stood up and jogged to look at the explosive. It had a timer, counting down.

_8:43  
8:42_

Agent X bolted for the stairs- he had to find the meeting and warn them. He came to the top of the staircase, and had to dodge several bullet shots by pressing himself to the wall.  
Apparently Stone was armed as well. He opened his mouth to begin monologuing, but Agent X rolled ninja-style, popped up, and slapped the pistol out of his hand before he could declare a word. He now had two weapons, one in each hand, and he said for Stone to get on his knees. Stone did as he was told.  
Agent X walked around, took a pair of handcuffs from his belt, and clipped them to the man's wrists. Usually this would be the police's job, but Agent X liked to have them around on his person. They had proved to be quite useful in situations like these. He took out another pair, closed one around the handle of the locked kitchen refridgerator, and closed the other around the chain between the first handcuffs. Before leaving, Agent X took Stone's watch and earpiece, set them on the ground, and smashed them. He took a picture of Stone on _his_ watch so he'd have proof for HQ, and hissed, "Where is the meeting?"  
Stone glanced warily at the gun pointed under his jaw. "Let me off first."  
"Tell me now, _or there will be a bullet in your head."_  
Stone couldn't read the agent's expression, but he preferred not to take the chance. "Storage room B, in the basement."  
"You better hope that's not a lie," he growled, knocked him out, and ran back down the stairs.  
He found that Stone had been truthful, much to Agent X's surprise. _Must be a new recruit,_ he thought hurriedly as he whipped around the corner. He banged on the door that warbled voices could be heard behind. Suddenly everything was silent. "Open it now!" he demanded. The head of International Security answered the door, but Agent X barged in before it was halfway open. Everyone at the meeting- about thirty people in all- were seated around a long table, for it was quite a large storeroom. "Storeroom" didn't give it enough credit; the room was furnished rather nicely, as if it had been designed for the purpose of being an important meeting room and "storeroom B" was simply a cover-name. Eyes widened and jaws dropped as they all recognized the man standing infront of them. "Charges have been placed all around the basement and the restaurant. Get out of here; we have less than five minutes." He was speaking to everyone, but his eyes were locked on Miss T's, who sat in the middle of the table on the side facing him. "Everyone out," he said again.  
The assembled men and women stood up calmly to briskly walk out. Their lives were threatened almost every day, so they were quite used to this procedure. Agent X was questioned only once: "Who did this?"  
"A man I've never heard of before," he growled, "but I _think _he might be a new henchmen for the Lady in Pink. Now, questions later! Move!" He stepped back to make sure everyone got out of the room and onto the stairs. Miss T's eyes met the agent's one more time before she was swept away with the crowd. However, Agent X soon caught up to her, at the top of the stairs, where she stood jamming her thumbs onto the keyboard of a small device. He recognized her behavior as panic. "Come on, Miss T, you need to get out of the building." His tone was gentle, but urgent.  
"My communications are jammed!" she cried in anger.  
"I came in a car, you have a ride." She looked up at him, and at that moment she reminded him of a small, blonde, wide-eyed child, and not his superior officer at all. "Come on." As he led her quickly away, his eyes widened at the sight of an empty pair of handcuffs hanging from the handle of the fridge. The second pair lay on the floor, opened.  
If he hadn't been in such a hurry to live, he would have stopped and analyzed them, but he had no time. Right now his primary goal was to get Miss T and himself out of the building before it exploded. They were four meters from the front doors when the floor shook underneath them- the first explosion. Agent X lost his balance and fell, but Miss T helped him scramble out the door. There, they both ran as fast as their legs could carry them to the beach, Miss T kicking off her heels as she ran. Two more small explosions were heard, and then a giant one that rumbled through the air. Agent X grabbed her around the waist, and threw themselves behind a house to avoid flying debris. When he opened his eyes, they were on the ground, inches apart from eachother. Color flew into the cheeks of Miss T, and he quickly got off her, feeling his face get hot. "Are you alright?" he murmered, looking back upon the restaurant that was now on fire. Sirens were wailing, people were screaming...  
"Yes," she stammered, brushing herself off. "Only scratches." Agent X lent a hand to help her stand up, and they both briskly walked the rest of the way to shore. When they arrived at the boulders, he clicked the button on his watch that got his transport to bob up on the surface.  
"Ladies first," said Agent X, lightly gesturing to the door which he had opened for her.  
She blushed ever-so-slightly, but then remembered why she was here right now in the first place. She turned to look back upon the column of black smoke that was pouring into the atmosphere. _"Kasidy!" _She screamed, and ran back to the building.  
"Wait!" Agent X sprinted to catch up with her. "No, you can't go back there! The Lady in Pink might be hanging about-"  
"I don't care." He stopped and blinked, the venom in her voice surprising him. He said nothing, but kept his hand close to his gun as he walked. They came across a fireman, pulling bodies from the burning building. Others were hosing the fire, and ambulence men were putting people on stretchers. They laid out the dead on the ground; there were only four. Miss T ran, and collapsed near a certain stretcher. Agent X began walking faster as he caught glimpse of singed red hair...  
He stood, almost like a rock in his black shirt and dark glasses, as Miss T broke down at the sight of the body. It was almost completely incinerated. Her left leg was gone, as was her left arm, and what was left was bloodied up and burnt. Her pale, lifeless face was the least damaged, and Agent X thought she looked peaceful, in a morbid kind of way. Tears came into his own eyes as he watched the woman he loved cry so fervently over the body of Kasidy Fisher. He hadn't particularly liked the girl, and she had never been very professional, but she'd been a good partner, and a compassionate friend. He sat down next to the bawling Miss T and wiped a tear from his cheek. He put his arm around her, and she cried into his shoulder.  
All Agent X could do for a long time was stare at Kasidy's face. The face that was once bright, smiling, and happy. The eyes that sparkled at any prospect of a mission, and he heard in his head the shriek of glee she'd had when she'd tried out a new weapon that day at the Headquarters in New York. That was where he'd first met her. _America lost someone great today, _he thought, wiping another tear. Agent X's weep was silent, very unlike Miss T's, but nevertheless, both cried just then, over a comrade they'd known for years.

The first few minutes of speeding through the Atlantic were eerily quiet, so quiet that Agent X began to feel the unpleasant vibes emanating from Miss T. "I'm sorry about Kasidy," he said quietly. "We all are. Where was she?"  
"Hiding in the building somewhere," sniffed Miss T. "I told her I'd warn her if there was any trouble...but..."  
"The communications were jammed," he finished for her slowly, the reason for why she had been so panicked dawning on him now.  
"Yes," she whimpered, and began crying again. Agent X put the vehicle in Auto Pilot, then took his glasses off and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I am so sorry."  
"How am I going to tell her parents?" she wailed, and Agent X handed her a handkerchief before she could even ask.  
"I...don't know." He was out of words to say, so he shook his head. "This is a very big loss for us. Kasidy was a great agent."  
"Yes, she was."  
A very long silence followed then, uninterrupted except for the occasional sniffs from Miss T. After ten minutes, Agent X decided to break it. "I..."  
When she looked at him, her eyes were filled with a sudden burning azure fire. "Agent X, your orders were to stay at Headquarters."  
"Aren't you glad I came then?" was his retort, not looking away from his driving.  
"Whether I'm glad you came or not is irrelevant. You deliberately disobeyed me."  
Agent X almost winced. When she put it like _that_, it sounded awful. "Look, I was keeping you and the meeting safe. I'm sorry I went against orders. I...should have gotten Kasidy too."  
Miss T bit her lip hard to keep from tearing up. "No. If you'd have known, we'd have gone looking for her, and we'd both be dead."  
"I would have sent you out first."  
"And I wouldn't have gone."  
"Why the bloody hell not?"  
"Because she's my friend! That's why!" Agent X pretended not to be surprised, but agents rarely ever risked openly saying that someone in the agency was dear to them. It posed weaknesses for enemies to pounce upon. The goal of being an agent was to be _stone_, to be a rock that couldn't be moved or stopped.  
_Stone._  
"We have to look him up," Agent X murmered.  
"Who?"  
"Stone," he said, hitting Manual and taking the wheel.


	3. Chapter 3

Agent X stepped out of the transport vehicle when they had docked, and walked around to open the door for Miss T. She pushed past him, strode over to the elevator and mashed the button. He sighed imperceptibly and joined her. The elevator ride began awkwardly for Agent X. The anger and grief emanating from Miss T saturated the atmosphere, and he quite honestly didn't know what to do. Give him a high-security base and he can find a way in in minutes, but throw him a distraught woman, and all he would be able to do would be to stand there uncomfortably. Agent X was not a people person, but he felt that he needed to apologize one more time. "I'm sorry this happened. I really am. I'm sorry I disobeyed you and your orders. I...was trying to protect you. I knew something would go wrong, and it did."

She looked up, meeting his eyes. Her gaze jumpstarted his heart, making it pound in his chest. "Why is your face red?" she asked quietly. He thought quickly.

"I just don't want it to seem anything besides officer-agent," he lied, referring to their relationship. He ran a hand through his hair and captured her blue eyes in his; this time it was her turn to blush.

"Don't look at me like that," she murmered, looking sharply away. Agent X felt a twinge of shame but ignored it. "Look, I'm sorry I got angry," she said. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be still alive." She stepped over to him and took a breath. "Thank you."

"I still disobeyed your orders though," he reminded her, not liking the squirmy feeling he had acquired in his stomach.

She smirked up at him. "Yes, and for that you will be cleaning my office tomorrow." He laughed, but it wasn't just a chuckle. It was a big, I-need-to-get-this-out kind of laugh, a let-go laugh. Soon Miss T was laughing with him, and the two smiled almost happily at eachother. "You know, I think Kasidy would have wanted it this way," she said thoughtfully. "She always wanted everyone to be happy."

"She was the most cheerful person I ever met," Agent X replied, shaking his head. The elevator doors opened with a _ding!_ and the two stepped out. _That was quite a long lift,_ he thought to himself, and glanced back at the closing doors with a suspicious look.

Miss T laughed and replied to his earlier statement. "Yeah, well, you need some cheerful in your life." She grinned at his raised-eyebrow reaction.

"Oh I do, do I?"

"Yes, you do." She laughed, cheeks pink as a sly smile flashed across the face of Agent X. At this she bolted down the narrow hallway, amazingly speedy for being in such a long dress.

"You're lucky you're barefoot," he growled before running after her. Because he was taller, he had longer legs, and he caught her as she turned a corner, grabbing her arm. Without missing a beat she ducked, delivered a swift kick that knocked his feet out from under him, and flipped him neatly over.

Realizing what had happened and seeing her smug face, Agent X began to laugh again. He grinned at her, his blue-grey eyes sparkling. "That was good," he complimented as she lent a hand to help him up.

"I try," she said cheekily. It took all his self control to keep from kissing her at that moment, but Agent X didn't feel sure that he could've done that anyway. He could never work up the courage to do that in real life; only in dreams would he kiss this woman. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing," he said, smiling to reassure her.

She raised an eyebrow but didn't push the matter. "We should start heading back," said she.

"We probably should," he agreed with a wise nod, the tone of his voice saying, _buuuuuuuuut I'd rather we stay here. _

She laughed, catching this. "We're not going to, are we," she said, smirking, "even though we both have work to do."

"_Agk, work._ Do I still have to go on that mission tomorrow?"

"I suppose I could send Nigel..." she murmered worriedly.

"Do you ever get a break?" he quietly asked, his hand lightly brushing the side of her cheek. He realized what he was doing and snatched his arm back to his side, averting his gaze from her red and wide-eyed face. He was too embarrassed to apologize, so the two said nothing for a while.

"Let's go," she whispered after a few minutes, as if afraid to break the silence. "Oh, look, hmm, a rip," she observed in a normal voice, looking down at the torn hem of her navy-blue dress as she walked.

"Shame," Agent X said teasingly.

"Shut up," she chuckled. "It wouldn't have happened if you hadn't been chasing me."

Agent X laughed this time. "Well, I wouldn't have been chasing you if..." _If you hadn't looked so cute._

"If?" She pressed, looking genuinely interested.

"If you hadn't looked so smug," he recovered smoothly. "And, actually, I think the rips might have occurred as were running away from the explosion."

She nodded. "Some." They were quiet until they reached the secret entrance. They put their hands on the scanners in the wall, and half of the wall rotated to show them the hidden hallway, on which were the rooms of the agents in the organization, Agent X included. "Well, goodnight, Agent X." He wished she would use his real name- she was the only one on the planet who knew. She must have sensed his longing, because she parted her lips to murmer something...and evidently decided against it. She pursed them and frowned.

_So close! _He nodded, showing he understood. "Goodnight, Miss T. Aren't you going to bed as well?"

"I have work to do," she replied, almost tartly, but then she sighed and brushed some hair from her face, revealing just how tired she really was. Agent X resisted the urge to pull her to him. He'd had that opportunity today, but at that moment she'd been bawling her eyes out. No, he wanted a moment when they were both relaxed, and happy...

"Alright," he said.

"_And_ I've got to have Nigel's briefing done by seven."

"See if your secretary can prepare that," he said gently, soothingly like a lover. The only thing missing was the physical touch. Miss T looked up sharply, recognizing this, and his heart sank as she took a respectful step back. "I'll see you in a couple hours." Her voice was quiet, surprisingly weak, and she wouldn't meet his eyes anymore.

Panic took over on the inside of Agent X, fearing he'd done something very wrong. However, he handled the situation with grace and nodded, turning around and punching in the code that opened the large sliding metal door to his room. He looked back just in time to see Miss T round the corner, and then she was out of sight.

_How could I have been so stupid? _he thought, flopping onto his bed. The clock on his side-table read 4:29 AM. He sighed, and whispered something into the darkness before drifting off into a hazy, much-needed sleep.

_"Goodnight, Tasha."_


	4. Chapter 4

Miss T groaned, slumping into her comfortable leather swivel chair at her desk in Conference Room 1. "I can't live like this, Casey," she informed her secretary, who was filing papers across the room. "I may be the head of one of the largest global organizations in the world, but I'm still human."

"You need sleep," Casey remarked dryly.

"Don't have time. Where is Arabella?"

"How should I know?"

"I am _not in the mood,"_ she growled, and held down the intercom button on the desk. "Arabella, come here please. No, scratch the please. _Now._" She tapped her fingers on the desk impatiently until the woman rushed in a few minutes later.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"I need a briefing done for Agent R. " She pushed a stack of papers toward the co-secretary. "He is taking the place of Agent X on his mission tomorrow." Arabella looked puzzled, but she knew better than to question her employer. If Miss T had decided to replace Agent X for this mission, she had a good reason. "Send him to me at precisely seven o'clock, and have the briefing ready on paper. This is the information we have. I wrote most of it, I just need you to finish. I have to rest."

"Yes, ma'am," Arabella said, took the stack of papers, and began to walk out. Miss T narrowed her eyes.

"And, Arabella."

"Ma'am?"

"Do remember that you're being watched at all times."

Miss T's alarm on her watch beeped loudly, startling her out of her nap. She yawned and glanced at the clock. 1:00 PM.  
She had sent Nigel off at seven; he would be checking in at five.

Her stomach growled loudly, and she got the sudden impulse to laugh. She then frowned at herself. _Naps to this to people, I suppose,_ she thought, and stood up from her leather swivel chair to stretch. Food was on her mind as she walked across the bright, sunlit room. She felt rested and happy, and clean in her regular knee-length skirt and blouse, and had to stop herself from blindly skipping down corridors. _What is wrong with me? _she pondered with a slight smile. Her thoughts flitted back to what she and Agent X had said to eachother much earlier that day, and felt her cheeks grow hot. The way he had spoken to her had given her goosebumps, and his eyes had searched for her soul...  
She shook herself, and with it banished the tingling feeling she had on the spot of her cheek where he had touched her. _This is ridiculous,_ she chided herself. _I'm a grown woman, yet I'm acting like an infatuated highschooler._ She rolled her eyes and rounded the corner, literally bumping into the man she had just scolded herself for thinking about. Neither had any time to brace for impact, so they both staggered backward. He pulled her up before she could lose her balance and fall. "Are you okay?" he asked. She looked at him and burst out laughing. After a startled moment, he began to laugh too.

"Am I okay?" she gasped, leaning against the wall for support. "Yes, I suppose I'm fine."

Agent X smiled. Her dark blue eyes were alert and sparkling; it was obvious she'd gotten some well-earned sleep. It made him happy. "Good. Time for tea."

"Right," she giggled and grinned at him, making his guts turn to jelly. They both made their way to one of the many kitchens in HQ.

"Biscuits?" he asked, opening a cupboard. "I'm not all that hungry, but I still need something to tide me over until dinner."

"Sure," she replied, taking a seat at the center table. "Me too." He came back with a plate of shortbread and two cups of tea. Miss T smiled, indicating that she was more than happy with this arrangement. He sat down next to her. "So I sent Nigel off this morning."

"Oh?" he replied, taking a bite of shortbread.

"Yes," she continued, her usual calm air of control regained. "I'm a little worried for him because it's his first mission alone, but-"

"It has to happen sometime," he cut in.

She nodded. "Exactly."

They ate in silence for the rest of the time, because Miss T had nothing else to say and Agent X barely said anything on a regular basis. She spoke as they were walking back toward Conference Room 1, "What are you going to do for the rest of the day?"

"Whatever you assign to me," he said in that voice that made her want to blush.

However, she maintained control. "You have the day off, Agent X."

"Brilliant." He grinned at her. "In that case, I think I'll sleep some more, then help you with your work."

"You don't need to do that for me," she said quickly.

"But I want to." The words were a simple, genuine fact. She met his eyes and he recovered himself. "Because, being the head of the organization, you always have so much work to do."

She released the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding and tried to fight the heat that threatened domination of her cheeks. "I don't have all that much, really." He gave her a sideways smile that clearly read, _Liar._ She laughed. "Well..."

Agent X made a curious noise that sounded like a snuffle of laughter.

"What?"

"I told myself I had clothes to wash before I went to bed, but I forgot that that's done for you at HQ." He chuckled and shoved a hand back through his hair. For Miss T, the motion was highly distracting. "I've certainly been away a while."

"You know, we never got a chance to look up Stone," she replied, shooting him a thoughtful smile.

"Correct."

"Let's do that now. I've got time before my deadlines."

He sent her a suspicious look. "I've never known you to be a procrastinator, Miss T."

"Well...I'm not." She looked up at him and smiled.

"_I'll _go look him up. You finish what you need to get done."

She gave up. "Alright." She paused. "But I refuse any help that you might offer."

He smirked. "Deal."

Agent X made his way into the Research Facility in the mostly underwater headquarters. This branch was heavily guarded, and so it took Agent X the better part of an hour to go through security and prove that it really was him. "Like the bloody airport," he growled. When he finally cleared the last door, he entered a huge room, larger than Conference Room 1. It was a dome, and to look up took a person's breath away. Men and women in glasses and white lab coats bustled around. Most were on the many, many computers in the room, but others were entering and exiting through doors that surrounded the room. Agent X had only been here once before, so it took a moment of looking around before he remembered why he was here. "Jeremy," he called.

"Why, Agent X!" the Irishman exclaimed upon sight. He strolled up to him and shook his hand. "I think you've grown, lad."

"I hope not," he chuckled. "I need some tailing done."

"On...?" the older man asked, his eyes sparkling with interest.

Agent X tapped a few buttons on his watch. "It's been sent to that computer's download file," he drawled with a satisfied smirk, pointing to the nearest computer. Jeremy stroked his bearded chin and kicked off the guy that had been on previously. Jeremy was obviously someone in charge, because he dropped what he was doing and left without complaint. They soon figured out why.

"Solitaire?" Jeremy growled. "Who was the idiot who installed games on our computers? Ugh." He took out a device that looked like a mobile phone. "Security," he said into it, "detain him." Immediately after, there were shouts, and Agent X turned around to see the man they had just booted off the computer dragged away by uniformed men. Jeremy, who hadn't turned around, cleared his throat to gain Agent X's attention. The picture the agent had taken of Stone the day before popped up, filling the screen. "This him?"

"Yes."

"Well, I've never seen him before, and I've seen a lot of enemies over the years." He frowned. "New recruit?"

Agent X nodded. "Perhaps. That was my first thought. But I recorded a transmission sent to him that sounds a hell of a lot like the Lady in Pink."

"Aha! Play it!" Jeremy cried. Agent X played it, then sent it to Jeremy's computer. After close analysis, he proposed, "My men can play with the frequencies and see if we can't figure out the rest of the words." A wry smile crossed his face.

"You think you can?" Agent X said, and smiled a little. "Brilliant."

"Apple juice?" Jeremy said, offering a juice box.

"Thanks."

"Straw?"

"Shaken, please." Jeremy gave him a look, but shook it nevertheless and handed it to him. Agent X grinned. "It tastes better this way. So anyway, can you have that done by...oh, say, two days' time?"

"I'll do all that I can," he said with a respectful nod.

"Thanks," Agent X said with a grateful smile. "For that and the juice."

"No worries," he replied dismissively.

Several hours later, Miss T was exhausted. Setting the last packet of files in the filing cabinet, she demanded the time from her secretary. It was almost midnight. "Has Agent R checked in yet?"

"No, ma'am."

Miss T rubbed her temples. Nigel had not called in at his five o'clock deadline, which had worried her, but she had ultimately given him a few more hours, in case he was in a jam or had forgotten. Now it was almost midnight, and there had been no call from Nigel. There was only one conclusion to be had. Time for a rescue mission.  
She supposed she could call Agent X in his room over the intercom, but something inside her wanted to retrieve him herself. She hit herself on the arm; the feeling didn't go away. Against her will, she hit a few buttons, and held down the one that turned on the intercom. "Agent X," she said in her usual 'firm commander' voice. Only snores were her answer. "Agent X," she repeated sternly. More snores. She took her finger off the intercom button and frowned. _That's funny. _She never knew Agent X to be anything but a light sleeper. Then she grinned. This gave her an excuse to go get him. "Excuse me," she said to her secretary, indicating that she would come back. Casey nodded curtly and went back to work. Little bubbles of heat pooled up in her stomach as she walked, making her feel sick. Was this really such a good idea?

Agent X, eyes closed, heard a small fist rap at the metal door to his room and smirked. He admitted to himself that faking snores was a bit juvenile, but hey, it had worked. He steadied his breathing, making it appear that he was sound asleep, waiting for her to come in. Miss T held access to all rooms in HQ because she was the mastermind of the whole organization.  
The door hissed open, and he heard her step in. More steps, and he felt a warm hand on his bare shoulder. "Agent X." He opened his eyes, and she quickly took her hand off him, taking two steps back as he sat up, the covers revealing him only wearing a pair of dark blue sweats...

He had forgotten that, but got over it quickly. He liked the expression that came over her face as her gaze swept over him. Her gorgeous eyes were wide, slowly taking in the sight. Agent X let a somewhat seductive grin slip over features. "Yes, Miss T?"

It took her a moment to recover; he revelled in her momentary vulnerability. She shook her head, almost as if to clear it, and then the normal Miss T returned. "Nigel hasn't called in," she said tersely, suddenly all business. Her jaw was slightly clenched. He wanted to do things to change that. "I need you to fetch him. I fear he's gotten captured or something of that kind."

He nodded and stood up. "Of course. How soon would you like me to leave?"

He noticed her take a step back when he stood. "Immediately."

"I'll leave at once then." He wondered what she had been thinking before she had gotten control of herself. He wondered if she was thinking them now. She exited the room, and he made his way to the bathroom.

He met her outside the door to the Eastern docking bay, looking very different. His green contacts obscured his normally blue-grey eyes, and he wore a brown wig and moustache. "Ready to go."

"You look older with facial hair," Miss T commented as she looked him over.

He grinned. "You like me better clean-shaven, then?"

She shrugged nonchalantly and replied, "Doesn't every woman?"

"I suppose that is true." He chuckled, then immediately sobered as a thought occurred to him. "Have...you told Kasidy's parents...?"

Miss T visibly winced, and he instantly regretted bringing it up. "Yes, I sent the notice today."

"You mean _yesterday," _he answered with a smile, looking up from his watch. "It's morning now."

Miss T smirked, and poked his nose. "You look very different each time you go out. It just reminds me that no one knows what the real you looks like except _moi._" She grinned, and he smiled in return.

"Yes, well, off I go, to rescue Nigel...I swear it, if we make it back alive, I'm going to strangle him."

"Then you would've wasted the effort of going in the first place."

He gave her a curious smile. "But it'll be so much more fun killing him myself." He paused, and the smile faded. "I better be off." He turned to leave, but she grabbed his arm out of impulse. He had to force himself to relax, because his heart was beating ninety miles an hour...

"Just...be careful," she murmered, peering up at him. "I don't want another one of my agents killed."

He wanted to lean over and kiss her. To hold her in his arms, smooth her hair and tell her it was all going to work out perfectly and according to plan. But Agent X just didn't know. The truth was that the life of a secret agent was a dangerous one. When he left a headquarters, he didn't know if he would even return at _all_, much less alive or dead. If there was one thing Agent X couldn't do, it was lie to Miss T. He took a deep breath and looked into her imploring eyes. "I'm always careful," he said with a reassuring smile. She raised an eyebrow.

"No, you're not," she responded, smiling wryly.

"Well I will this time, just because you asked."

"You _better._" She put her hands on her hips and grinned. "Now get out of here."

"Yes, Miss T," he said, beaming obnoxiously, and turned his back on her to open his vehicle door. As he slid into the driver's seat and said the password to turn on the car, he watched her walk away, his thoughts flitting back to the moment she'd seen him shirtless. He let out a slow breath in longing, realizing for the umpteenth time that he could never tell her he loved her. Ever. That's just the way it had to be. But that never stopped him from wanting her anyway. Jarred out of cloud nine, he gave the signal to the controls manager. and felt the jerk of the bay doors opening, water once again engulfing his car. "Here we go again," he muttered, shifted gear, and sped forward in the directions Miss T had given him.

A few minutes later, a loud beep came from his speakers. He frowned and hit 'accept transmission'. Miss T's voice spoke through, and by her tone he could tell she was smiling. "_Oh, and by the way, Agent X: You're still cleaning my office when you get back. Thought I'd forgotten, had you?"_  
He grinned.


End file.
